The Kindness of Strangers
by bookworm1945
Summary: Iku is stressed about upcoming exams, and she find support from an unlikely source.


Just a short Library Wars one-shot about Doujo and Iku, and Iku making a friend. Takes place right before the promotion exams. I might write more on it, give her friend more character development, but I'm lazy so I'm not sure. Reviews appreciated. I don't own Library Wars, et cetera et cetera.

Iku sighed. It wasn't the first time she had done so that day, and it was unlikely to be the last. She was fed up with herself. Usually she wasn't so down, even if she was having a rough day. But today was an exception.

That morning Shibasaki had told her that the promotion exams were coming up, which composed of a written test of Library Protocol and a field test, which was yet to be determined. The written test was bad enough; anyone could tell that Iku was not book-smart. But the field test waited like some unknown horror, giving her no way to prepare. Shibasaki had said that they would be letting the exam takers know what the field test would be before too long, but in the meantime she was a nervous wreck. This morning she had even shown up late to work because she lost track of time worrying about exams.

Add that to the fact that today Doujo's team were on archive duty, and today was not Iku's day. Library duties had never been her strong suit, but the archives had a kind of lingering unpleasantness that stayed with her from her early days on the Force, and the blundering mistakes she had made then. She was much improved now, of course, but it was still her least favorite duty.

Iku turned to reach for the next book, and found Doujo looking back at her. She jerked back as she yelped in surprise, knocking her head against the shelf behind her.

"Ow…." She said as she rubbed her head. "What are you doing there, Instructor Doujo?"

Doujo had a look of annoyance on his face as he replied, "I was about to ask why you looked so down before you threw yourself into that shelf, blockhead."

Iku's face flushed with embarrassment. "You startled me. You shouldn't sneak up on people, sir!"

Doujo's hand flew up again to lightly smack the side of her head. "Who was sneaking? Stop zoning out on the job before you start throwing accusations around!"

Both of them jumped when Komaki called from a few aisles down, "Give it a rest, you two."

There was a chagrined silence between them. Doujo cleared his throat self-consciously. "Anyway, back to my original question, what's with the long face?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

Doujo gave her an expectant look.

"Well… I'm a bit nervous for the upcoming exam… sir."

"Hmm… knowing you, you should be."

Iku gave him a flat look. "Thanks ever so much for the words of encouragement, sir."

"At least you know your limitations. Better to be knowingly ignorant than ignorantly informed."

Iku stared at him. "Wh-what? What the heck is that supposed to mean?"

Dojou scowled. "It's a quote from a book I once read. It was a long time ago, so I can't remember it quite right. Anyway, there's nothing for it. I'm not letting you embarrass my squad in the written exam, so I'll tutor you starting today."

Iku's mouth worked, but no sound came out. "Wh-what, really? But you're already so busy…."

Doujo's scowl became more pronounced. "Which is why if you don't pass the written exam, I'm going to remind you why you used to call me 'demon instructor.' Got it, Kasahara?"

Iku shied away from his stern expression, muttering "Yes sir" as she escaped back to her duties. After a few strides she suddenly stopped and turned, saying "Thank you, sir!" in the most gracious voice she could muster.

Doujo just gave a tiny smile before turning back to his own duties.

Iku sighed. Again.

The workday was finally over, and she was feeling exhausted. Normally she wouldn't be this worn out, but today had been exceptionally trying. After the squad's library duties had been completed, Doujo had tutored Iku for a solid two hours straight, drilling any and all important information on Library Protocol into her head. It didn't help that Iku knew Doujo was probably just as tired as herself. Knowing that he was going out of his way to help her through her own incompetence only added to the headache forming in the back of her head. Iku decided that she needed to unwind a bit before going to bed, so she popped into the dorm to tell Shibasaki she was going out. There was a small coffee shop that stayed open late, and it's convenient location near the base meant she could stay for awhile and still get back before curfew.

Iku set out down the sidewalk, enjoying the twilight air and trying not to think to hard about anything. It was hard though, seeing as she was by herself and the walk to the shop was long enough to allow for some introspective. There was very little foot traffic at this hour, and she couldn't see another person walking. The night was growing dimmer, and she wandered through a more deserted part of town en route to the shop. Before long thoughts started to creep back into her mind; the vast amount of information she needed to learn quickly, guilt and shame at requiring Doujo to take time out of his day to teach her, the unknown field exam still waiting to be revealed. Bit by bit, the exhaustion of the day settled on her shoulders, she felt an overwhelming sense of inadequacy.

Iku slowed her pace, eventually coming to a stop near the opening of an alley, in a near-deserted portion of the street. She leaned against a wall, and let tears of frustration and helplessness spill over her eyelids, silently sliding down her cheeks. She closed her eyes and let out a heavy sigh, fraught with the sense of overwhelming frustration that accumulated throughout the day.

A hand suddenly grabbed her wrist. Iku's head snapped up as she heard a gruff voice say, "An emotionally unstable woman out alone at night? Do you _want_ to be assaulted?"

Iku's head snapped up to see a tall man in disheveled, dirty clothes holding her wrist in a vise-like grip. She instantly pulled with her arm with all her strength, fully expecting the man's grip to release. He didn't let go. He was actually stronger than her! Iku felt panic starting to form in the pit of her stomach as she ran through judo moves she pull on him with her right wrist incapacitated.

The man raised his free hand in a placating gesture, attempting to calm her. "It's okay, I'm not trying to harm you."

Iku glared up at him. "Then let go of my wrist," she said through gritted teeth.

The man seemed surprised to find that he was still holding her wrist. "Oh, yes... quite right. Sorry." Without another word he strode off down the road in the way Iku had come, toward the more brightly lit section of town. A few meters away, he paused and turned back to her. "Ah, if you would follow me. I doubt you meant to come here." With a start, Iku realized she had wandered to a more… disreputable section of town in her distress. She hastened after the stranger, eager to be back on the streets she knew.

To her surprise, Iku noticed that he first went into a convenience store. While she waited outside, she wondered why exactly she was waiting. She could just go back to the base. It certainly seemed more reasonable than keeping company with a stranger she wasn't sure about. Although, that stranger _had_ led her out of a dangerous section of town when she was by herself. She determined that she waited out of curiosity, just as the tall man came out of the store. Without a word he strode off again, leaving Iku to follow at his heels.

They approached a brightly lit park, one that Iku knew well. It's proximity to the base made it a popular spot for librarians who wanted a picnic on their day off or break period. Even now, a few people strolled here and there, enjoying the cool night air.

The strange man sat down on a bench, and looked at Iku expectantly. Hesitantly, she sat down beside him. The stranger turned toward the bag he brought from the convenience store and started to dig through it. Iku studied him while he was preoccupied, noting his dishelveled hair and dirty clothing that had alarmed her earlier. As she looked closer, however, she could see the imprint of a wallet in his pocket, and a burnished gold ring on his hand, along with a watch that while not looking overly expensive, was obviously not cheap. She studied his face, deciding he was about five years older than Doujo. Altogether, she couldn't pin him down.

Turning back towards Iku, he brought out first a can of coffee, which he handed to Iku, then some tea, which he placed on the bench next to himself, and then a small packet of tissues, which he also handed to Iku. Surprised, Iku noted that tears were still wet on her cheeks.

"Now," the stranger said, opening his tea, "are you okay?"

Iku stared.

This man, with his unkempt appearance and strange manner, had practically dragged Iku out of that street because she was crying and he was concerned. He was a complete stranger, he didn't know her, and it was really none of his business whatever happened to her one way or the other. He had his own life going on, although Iku didn't really understand what that life entailed. But he cared. About a complete stranger that looked like she was at the end of her rope.

Iku started to cry again.

The man swore under his breath, hastily plucking a tissue from the packet and holding it out to her. "Sorry, sorry. It's none of my business. I didn't mean to upset you."

Iku just took the tissue and shook her head, unable to make words come out. They sat in patient silence for a few minutes while Iku regained her composure.

Finally she was able to speak. "No, sorry, just… thank you." Iku sighed and leaned back against the bench. Finally she remembered the coffee in her lap and opened it, taking a sip. She looked at the man beside her. He was staring ahead simply watching the people in the park.

"You're really kind, you know that?" Iku said to him. He started, turning back to face her, and Iku saw a faint amount of puzzlement on his face. "Thank you for the coffee. And for caring. Mostly for caring." The man turned about to watch the park again.

"You looked like you were being crushed by the weight of the world. It was pretty concerning," he said in that gruff voice.

Iku laughed softly. "No, nothing that dramatic. I've just… been under some stress lately."

He hesitated. "Care to talk about it?"

Iku actually considered it. Here he was, a complete stranger, and she was actually considering telling him all of her worries and problems. She wouldn't do it, of course. She had no business unloading all of her problems on him. He probably had his own problems, and besides, telling him wouldn't make her problems go away. What would she tell him? That the man she loved was being considerate and tutoring her, but she knew how much of a burden she was to him? How inadequate she felt? How scared she was she would fail while her peers succeeded? No, he was kind, but that didn't give her the right to pour out all her troubles onto this total stranger.

She looked up into his face to tell him so, and saw that he was looking back down at her. Strangely, although he was dressed like a vagrant, his face was clean-shaven and free of dirt or grime. Although, now that she got a better look at him, there did seem to be bright red flecks of color on his forehead. Below his forehead his brown eyes looked back at her, and they didn't seem to be the eyes of a stranger. They were the eyes of a friend; patient, free of judgment and resentment. And all of a sudden Iku found her mouth was moving.

"I'm a soldier in the Library Force, and promotion exams are coming up. My friend Shibasaki and my colleague Tezuka are definitely going to pass, they're extremely smart and talented, but I've always been an idiot when it comes to book knowledge, and I have no idea what the field exam will be. On top of that, my instructor who's a bit stern but actually pretty nice is tutoring me because it's hard for me to study, and I know it's tiring him out 'cause he's a busy person and I just feel really useless and frustrated and… I'm just tired of it."

Iku stopped, inwardly kicking herself for talking so much about what she resolved not to talk about. "I'm sorry, I know it's not that big of a deal and you really don't care…."

"No, it's okay," he stopped her. He sat quietly for a moment, thinking, then began to talk slowly.

"I know work can be pretty stressful, especially if you're actually living at your workplace, like you're living at the base. You may feel useless, but I can assure you your not, otherwise they wouldn't let you on the Task Force. Just the fact that you're working there and that you're surrounded by people you admire means that they think you deserve to be there. The fact that your superior is helping you makes me think that he wants you to succeed, and he's willing to personally help you so that you can. It's the job of those older to help their subordinates grow." He sat quietly for moment. "Instead of feeling useless, I think you should feel honored that your superior wants to see you succeed."

Iku didn't say a word, opting to sit quietly as the night moved around them. Doujo always scolded her, not hesitating to let her know of her mistakes and shortcomings. Sometimes it stung to here the truth put so bluntly. But he never lied to her, and she knew when he praised her, it was as genuine as could be. Even now, she could tell that she had made a lot of progress from her training period just from the things Doujo had said to her. If he wanted, he could have had her transferred to another squad. But he bore with her mistakes and shortcomings and helped her to overcome them. Like now, how he was helping her study for the written exam. He didn't have to, but as always, he was helping her grow and overcome her obstacles.

For the first time that day, Iku smiled. There on a park bench, coffee in one hand, tissue in the other, Iku sat next to a complete stranger, and she smiled like the sun.

She stood, feeling quite refreshed. The man next to her hastily stood as well. Still smiling, she turned to him. "Sir, what's your name?"

He looked at her, seeming faintly startled. "Hiro…. Kurosawa."

Impulsively, Iku put her arms around him and gave him a brief, tight hug. "Thank you so much, Kurosawa-san. That… I really needed that. Today has been just so overwhelming and… Well, thank you."

Kurosawa was looking at her, an expression of surprise still on his face, when he suddenly seemed to come back to himself. "Ah, no, don't mention it. I just felt like you needed help… or something…." He turned away, looking slightly embarrassed.

Iku suddenly felt embarrassed herself. She turned and started to look through her purse. "Ah, the money… for the coffee…"

Kurosawa held up his hand. "No, that was my treat. It's fine."

Iku tried to protest, but he made a placating gesture, stopping her mid-sentence. "No, really."

Iku reluctantly conceded defeat. "All right. Thank you again, then. Ah, what time is it…." She trailed off as she looked at her watch. Faintly, then getting stronger, a sort of groan seemed to come from Iku.

Kurosawa stepped forward, concerned. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

Iku looked up at him, a sort of desperate fear in her eyes. "I'm dead! I am _so dead!_ He's gonna kill me! Oh no, oh no, oh _crap_..."

Kurosawa looked confused. "I don't understand…."

"It's over an hour past curfew! Instructor Doujo is going to kill me!"

Without another word she set off at a sprint towards the base, shouting over her shoulder as she ran, "Thanks again, Kurosawa-san! Come to my funeral!"

Iku ran like a bat out of hell. This was not good. Staying out past curfew counted as a strike against her dorm record, and on top of that there was a fine. But by far the worst part of it was if she wasn't back within an hour of curfew, her squad leader would be notified and the dorm manager would ask her roommate if Iku had gone somewhere reputable. The Defense Force couldn't very well have its soldiers out partying in night clubs. Instructor Doujo was going to _kill_ her.

She finally reached the base, and having suffered the embarrassment signing back into the base late, she jogged back towards her dorm, hoping nobody sinister would be waiting for her.

No such luck. As she entered the dorm lobby, she saw a solitary figure sitting in one of the chairs, a definite aura of malice surrounding him. He was facing towards the door, and unfortunately Iku could see him glaring at her as she crossed the room to stand in front of him, her head bowed meekly.

"Ah…. Sorry I was out late, sir. I kinda lost track of time."

Doujo stood, somehow seeming to tower above her even though she was taller than him. "Lost track of time? For two hours?! What the hell were you doing, you idiot?! Honestly, it really isn't that hard to keep curfew, I promise!" Iku cringed, waiting for a fist to descend on the top of her head, but it never came. She peered up, and was startled to see Doujo's face mere inches from hers, studying her.

"Ah! You've been crying!" Doujo exclaimed. Iku cursed inwardly, she should have washed her face to wipe away all traces of tears before coming back to the base. She tried to hide her face, but Doujo was having none of it.

"Is that why you were late? Because you had to go find some secluded area to cry in?" Doujo's voice was oddly softer now, gentler. She felt a hand rest on her head. "Was it because you were stressing out over the exam? Perhaps feeling inferior to your esteemed friends?"

As always, he saw right through her. Sometimes it was hard, having him know all her faults and insecurities. But other times it was a comfort, knowing that he treated her sincerely, for who she was, faults and all. That gentle voice he was using, the comforting hand on her head, the concerned face he was making, all directed at her, even knowing how many mistakes she made or how ignorant she often was. Yes, it was a comfort to know that despite it all, he still cared.

Iku looked up at him, smiling. She bowed formally and said, "Sir, I apologize for staying out past curfew. I will take full responsibility for it. I'll try to come back on time in the future, and I'm sorry for troubling you this late at night."

Doujo just stared at her, looking completely baffled.

"Also, sir, I would like to thank you for being a great boss. I'm being sincere, but I'll probably never be able to bring myself to say it again, so please remember that I am very thankful for all that you've done for me."

Iku saluted, and then quickly turned and strode down the hall before the embarrassment for what she'd just said could hit her. She needed to get to bed, and quickly. She still needed to study for the written exam tomorrow, on top of doing her library duties.

But oddly, she felt a vague sense of confidence and a bit more self-assured now. She felt like she could get through this, because she had people that supported her all around her. Even a complete stranger, like Kurosawa-san, cared. This knowledge was quite encouraging.

Back in the dorm lobby, Doujo stood alone, in the same position Iku had left him in ten minutes before. Coherent thought finally seemed to be coming back to him. Doujo glanced at the clock. It was late. Turning, Doujo made his way back to the men's section of the dorms, completely unaware of the faint smile on his face.


End file.
